Franchise Veteran Shares His Tips for Success

A 32-year franchising veteran, starting right after high school as an Oliver's Pizza franchisee, Todd Greatches has experienced much with various franchising companies. A multi-unit franchisee, he shares what he's learned along the way.

On the importance of a company's leader:

There are some similarities in Toppers and Papa John’s [whom Todd worked for as a district manager]. When I first met John Schnatter and became familiar with Papa John’s, the quality of the food was huge and John was super passionate about the quality of the product. I see many of the same traits in Scott Gittrich, the founder of Toppers. He’s very passionate, almost to a point I haven’t seen in anyone before. He wants to make sure we put out the best product. He wants to make sure we have the best quality ingredients, whether we were a mom-and-pop chain or the largest chain in the world. He wants to be the best, and he’s got passion that I haven’t really seen since I first met [Schnatter] back in the early ’90s. — Alex Dixon, QSR

Greatches puts the emphasis on millennials:

The most important thing is probably going after millennials. The millennial group is everything right now. In years past, you would put out coupons in the pizza business or you would run a commercial on the radio or television. People would see the product and come in.

With millennials, it’s a lot different. They’re a lot more focused on if it’s a decent product that’s good for you and if there’s something associated with it. You’re not just buying a product. — Dixon, QSR